Infant Formula Safety Concerns

Some WIC participants have expressed concern about infant formula safety following the March 18 Consumer Reports publication. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates infant formula and if they determine that a formula is unsafe, they will remove it from the market. As a result of this report, the FDA announced a new initiative to strengthen its oversight of the formula industry, including increased testing for heavy metals and other contaminants. Currently, the FDA has not determined that any formulas in U.S. commerce are unsafe and require market removal. Our WIC team will keep participants updated if anything changes.

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WIC Fraud and Abuse

The South Carolina WIC program is intended for families in need of nutritional education and support. WIC foods and formula are to be used for the WIC participant only and cannot be sold, given away, traded, or donated. Unused WIC foods and formula should be returned to the local WIC site. Fraud and abuse take resources away from those who need them most.

Examples of fraud and abuse include participants who:

  • Sell, give away, trade or donate WIC benefits
  • Sell, give away, trade or donate formula or foods purchased with WIC benefits (including selling, giving away, trading or donating formula and/or foods through online sites such as Facebook, Craigslist, etc.)
  • Do not tell the truth about income, current address, family size or pregnancy when applying for WIC
  • Intentionally obtain WIC benefits from more than one WIC site or another state at the same time
  • Redeem WIC benefits after a change in custody. Learn more about DSS custody changes.
  • Sell, give away, donate, or fail to return loaner breast pumps

In cases of fraud and/or abuse, you and your entire family may be:

  • Disqualified from the WIC program
  • Required to repay the value of the foods, baby formula or breast pump issued to you
  • Prosecuted under state and federal laws

The South Carolina WIC program has a zero tolerance policy for abusive behavior toward WIC staff, vendors, and farmers. You may be suspended from the WIC program if you verbally abuse, harass, threaten, or physically harm WIC staff, vendors, or farmers.

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